"Martha laughed: 'What's up, girl, have you started speaking in tongues?' Martha raised her hands in the air and nodded her head, her eyes closed like an earnest Pentecostal."

A novel that crosses genres, with a portal into the odd, Glossolalia offers a glimpse into the psychological aspects of both Nancy, our heroine, and others, including her Uncle Geoff, as well as into the minds of those in the Agents of the Nevermind with their secret language of Enochian. Armed with her wits and abilities of confusing origin, Nancy is influenced by Geoff, who employs her and utilizes mind control, including unknown medications; Martha, an employee where she works who teaches her about sex and sensuality; and Alyssa, her karate sparing partner and friend. Nancy is concerned about the poisons they make such as pesticides and the illegal dumping of XXX through her workplace, D-CIDE, which is run by Geoff and is affiliated with evangelist Terry Crank's church, a church that focuses on wanting war with non-Christians. Nancy chases the story of the connection between D-CIDE, the church, and the U.S. government.

When triangles keep popping up in her life, Nancy tries to figure out their meaning. She also recognizes she must go off the medication Geoff gives her because they keep her in a surreal state that lessens her memories of the past and befuddles her current life. She is also confused about Dog, the toy pop-up that is associated with the child Emily. What does this toy have to do with her life as both a child and now as an adult? Also, who is the seductress Angela Ageless and how does she affect the story?

The political aspects of the secret black ops of the U.S. Intelligence Agencies including the CIA and mind control, the use of XXX for murders as it is untraceable in the body, and the focus on political espionage adds a layer of mystique to the story. For who is an ally and who is a black ops killer, and most importantly, who can Nancy trust as she seeks the truth regarding governmental horror stories and her own culpability in these horrors?

Never boring, the book takes us on a whirlwind tour of LSD projects, conspiracies, a love story, fugue states, mind control including drugs, the occult, the Mob, psychosis, fascist drug lords, glossolalia, sex, multiple personality disorder/dissociative identity disorder (MPD/DID), wars and arming various groups to overthrow politicians who are against U.S. government policies. Other concerns include illegal dumping of poisons, Aryan supremacy, childhood abuse and trauma, money laundering, the black market, secret languages, Satanism, and murders. At times, the presentation is fascinating, especially in the mostly accurate depiction of DID and the alters of the host personality. The occult influence adds intrigue to the story with the secret rooms of the church and the secret teachings of the Nevermind.

While all of this makes for a fascinating read, the book tries to be something to everyone and, at times, becomes overwhelming with all the twists and turns. Within the interlocking stories, the book ends abruptly with little detail and many unanswered questions that perhaps subverts the rest of the story. This thriller is the initial book in a continuing series, which will offer the reader many insights into politics, evangelism, and psychological intrigue. On a deeper level, exploring what is fantasy and what is reality is something we all face as we search to explore meaning in our own lives, just as Nancy does, albeit, in her complex, surreal story.

This review was written by a professional book reviewer with no guarantee that it would receive a positive rating. Some authors pay a small fee to have a book reviewed, while others do not. All reviews are approximately half summary and half criticism. The US Review of Books is dedicated to providing fair and honest coverage to all books.